The field of the invention pertains to wrenches and, in particular, to open and closed (box) end wrenches.
Most commonly, ratchet wrenches utilize a pawl and gear assembly movable in the ratcheting direction relative to the wrench head and handle as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 2,500,835. The gear has a central opening therethrough formed to engage the complementary surfaces of a nut or bolt head. Such a construction, although very suitable for a box or closed end wrench where the gear surrounds the nut or bolt head, is not suitable for an open end ratcheting wrench.
Open end ratcheting wrenches utilize a plurality of individual hardened steel rollers extending from recesses in the wrench head into the central opening for engagement with a nut or bolt head. In the form best known to applicant a single spring set in a peripheral slot about the central opening urges the rollers toward the central opening. The configuration requires several relatively expensive machining steps to form the individual roller recesses and the peripheral slot. The assembly of the wrench requires the spring and rollers be held in place by a plurality of carefully placed rivets making difficult the replacement of any rollers that become damaged in use. To overcome the expensive manufacture and repair of the prior art open end ratcheting wrenches, applicant has developed the ratcheting wrenches disclosed below.